Oklahoma head coach Bob Stoops held a press conference on late Wednesday afternoon to address the release of Joe Mixon’s video of the OU running back violently punching a woman in the face two years ago. The video, which was made public last Friday, was from July 2014, but a legal battle kept it from the public until five days ago. Stoops said Wednesday that had Mixon done what he did in 2016, he would be dismissed from the team.
Bob Stoops says Joe Mixon would’ve been dismissed if he’d punched a woman in 2016
The running back was suspended for the entire 2014 season.
Photo by Brett Deering/Getty Images
Mixon was suspended for the entire 2014 season, and he took a pleading agreement later that year, which allowed him to legally maintain innocence while acknowledging prosecutors had the evidence to convict him of misdemeanor assault.
Mixon’s victim filed a civil lawsuit against him in July. The junior rushed for 1,936 yards and 15 touchdowns. He leads the team in rushing yards this season. Given Mixon’s status as a draft-eligible junior, he will be able to declare for the 2017 NFL Draft after this season if he wishes.
It’s obvious that the climate surrounding violence against women nowadays, especially in sports, has become much more reactionary, and holds more weight in society than ever before. A big reason for that is former Baltimore Ravens running back Ray Rice’s public video of him punching his now-wife Janay Palmer in an elevator, which was released in September 2014, two months after the Mixon incident. However, it is a bit ironic that Stoops would say he would’ve dismissed him, but Mixon has been fully reinstated since 2015, and he will play in the Sooners’ upcoming Sugar Bowl game against Auburn on Jan. 2.
Former Florida State quarterback Deandre Johnson was released from Jimbo FIsher’s team in 2015, shortly after the video of him punching a woman in a Tallahassee bar was released. He recently signed with FAU.
See More:
